What’s Going On With The Australian Mushroom Murder Case?

This week, an Australian jury found Erin Patterson, 50, guilty of murdering three elderly relatives and the attempted murder of another by lacing their food with a deadly, toxic mushroom.

The mushroom was found in the beef wellington meal Patterson had cooked for the victims, after inviting each of them to lunch in her home.

Here’s what’s been going on.

The whole of Australia – and the world – had their eyes on Erin after a fatal dish of beef wellington was served to the family at lunch in July 2023, leaving her former in-laws and one of their sisters dead only days after the meal.

Another person – the sister’s husband – was left in a serious condition in hospital for weeks but has survived.

Erin’s ex-husband Simon Patterson was also invited to the meal but pulled out the evening before.

Throughout the 10-week trial, Patterson denied purposefully causing the deaths of Don and Gail Patterson and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, claiming that her use of the death cap mushrooms in the meal was a complete accident.

The mushrooms are known to contain amanita toxins which lead to liver failure about two days after consumption. Patterson claimed that she hadn’t fallen ill after the meal as she had purged, due to an eating disorder.

However, the prosecution concluded that Patterson had gone to extreme measures to lure and poison her guests, including fabricating a cancer diagnosis.

BBC reports that barrister Nanette Roger pointed out the recent hiring of Colin Mandy, one of Melbourne’s top criminal barristers, and the discovery of website listing locations of death cap mushrooms in Erin’s search history.

Rogers accused Erin of measuring out the deathly mushrooms on a kitchen scale to weigh out the fatal dose, while keeping her portion mushroom-free.

The 12-person jury deliberated for a week after the court hearing, eventually concluding that Erin was guilty on the three charges of murder and the attempted murder of another. The sentencing date is yet to be announced.

The unusual case has gripped the world, so much so that several documentaries and podcasts are already in the making.

Erin’s motive is not yet known.